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Northern Arctic
Northern Arctic The Northern Arctic Eco zone is very cool due to its vast size, yet very few people live here because of its harsh climate. Location The Northern Arctic is located in both northern Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. (Northern Arctic) Climate The Northern Arctic is the coldest and driest place in the country. Winter nights last for days, sometimes even months. The precipitation in the Northern Arctic is very low, they may only get 100 to 200mm per year, because the precipitation here is so low that it can be classified as an Arctic Desert. In the northern part of the Eco zone the ice stays on the water all year long but in the south the ice comes off only in the winter months.(Northern arctic) The temperature average is below freezing all year round, with an annual temperature of -14 degrees celsius. In the summer the temperature may only rise up to -1.5 degrees celsius even in the most southern parts of the Ecozone. Winter temperatures can easily reach below -30 degrees celsius. (Northern Arctic Ecozone) Geology and geography The western parts of the Eco zone contain sedimentary rock meanwhile the east contains mostly Precambrian granite (Precambrian granite is basically granite that dates back to the Precambrian times).The west is also filled with glacial deposits and shattered limestone. Most of the Northern Arctic is flat or slightly inclined terrain. The plains may go on for several kilometres inland from the coast. You can identify the east by plateaus and rocky hills.(Northern Arctic) The Northern Arctic covers around 1.5 million km2, wow! thats like one seventh of canadas entire surface.(Northern Arctic Ecozone) Plants The entire Northern Arctic Eco zone lies above the tree line therefore no full sized tree species can be found there. Very few plant species live in the Northern Arctic due to its harsh climate. "Some plants found here include purple saxifrage, mountain avens, arctic poppy, arctic willow, Dryas species, kobresia, sedges, cottongrass, moss, dwarf birch, northern Labrador tea, Vaccinium species, alder, alpine foxtail, wood rush, wire rush, moss campions, white arctic heather, arctic bladder campion, yellow oxytrope, mastodon flower, arctic lousewort, mountain sorrel, pygmy buttercup, river beauty, chickweed." (Northern Arctic ) Animals There are only around 20 animal species that live in the Northern Arctic. The largest animals are: the polar bear, the arctic wolf, the barren-land caribou and the muskox. "Other animals found here include arctic fox, ermine, wolverine, snowshoe hare, arctic hare, brown lemming and collared lemming. Aquatic mammals that live in the waters off the coast include walrus, ringed seals, bearded seals, beluga, narwhal, and various other whales." (Northern Arctic) Birds Most of the bird species migrate to the Northern Arctic in the spring to mate meaning they will eventually leave in the fall when it starts to get too cold for them. "Birds of prey that can be found in the northern arctic include gyrfalcon, rough-legged hawk, and snowy owl. Waterfowl include snow goose, brant, Canada goose, eider, oldsquaw duck, red-throated loon, arctic loon and king eider. Shorebirds and seabirds include the red phalarope, parasitic jaeger, red knot, dunlin, long-tailed jaeger, northern fulmar, glaucous gull, white-rumped sandpiper, black-bellied plover, and ruddy turnstone. Some forest birds of the Eco zone are the willow ptarmigan, rock ptarmigan, hoary redpoll, snow bunting, lapland longspur, and horned lark." (Northern Arctic) Humans The population of the Northern Arctic is approximately 15,000. Inuits make up most of the population. Most of the people who live here live of the land and enroll in activities like hunting, fishing and trapping. Some people also do gas and oil explorations and tourism to make a living. works cited '' Northern Arctic'ill.ca/english/ecozones/northernarctic/northernarctic.htm' The Canadian biodiversi''ty Website 'Torsten Bernhardt,Museums Assistance Program of Heritage Canada ' Website Mcgill University/ Redpath Museum ''' November 18th 2013.''' http://canadianbiodiversity.mcg Northern Arctic Ecozone. www.arctic.uoguelph.ca/cpe/environments/.../northarctic/north. website. November 25th 2013. http://www.arctic.uoguelph.ca/cpe/environments/land/northarctic/north_arctic.htm.